
Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace, in
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
, India, is an example of Indo-Islamic architecture and was the summer residence of the Mysorean ruler
Tipu Sultan
Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He in ...
.
Hyder Ali
Hyder Ali ( حیدر علی, ''Haidarālī''; 1720 – 7 December 1782) was the Sultan and ''de facto'' ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore in southern India. Born as Hyder Ali, he distinguished himself as a soldier, eventually drawing the at ...
commenced its construction within the walls of the
Bangalore Fort
Bangalore Fort began in 1537 as a mud fort. The builder was Kempe Gowda I, a vassal of the Vijaynagar Empire and the founder of Bangalore. Hyder Ali in 1761 replaced the mud fort with a stone fort and it was further improved by his son Tipu S ...
, and it was completed during the reign of Tipu Sultan in 1791. After Tipu Sultan's death in the
Fourth Anglo-Mysore War, the British Administration used the palace for its secretariat before moving to Attara Kacheri in 1868. Today the Archaeological Survey of India maintains the palace, which is located at the center of Old Bangalore near the
Kalasipalya
Kalasipalya is a locality in the central part of Bangalore, Karnataka, India, and one of the older and most congested places in the city. The locality is home to landmarks such as Bangalore Fort and Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace. The area is kno ...
bus stand, as a tourist spot. Entry fee is 20 for Indian citizens, while for foreign visitors is .
The structure was built entirely teak and stands adorned with pillars, arches and balconies. It is believed that Tipu Sultan used to conduct his durbar (court) from the eastern and western balconies of the upper floor. There are four smaller rooms in the corners of first floor which were Zenana Quarters.
There are beautiful floral motifs embellishing the walls of the palace. The site also holds a painting of grand throne visualized by Tipu Sultan himself. Coated with gold sheets and stuck with precious emerald stones, Tipu had vowed never to use it until he completely defeated the British Army. After Tipu Sultan's death, the British dismantled the throne and auctioned its parts as it was too expensive for a single person to buy whole.
The rooms in the ground floor have been converted into a small museum showcasing various achievements of Tipu Sultan and his administration. There are newly done portraits of the people and places of that time. There is a replica of Tipu's Tiger, which is in the
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and ...
in London. Tipu Sultan's clothes and his crown are present in silver and gold pedestals. The silver vessels given by a general to Hyder Ali is also displayed.
The Horticulture Department, Government of Karnataka, maintains the area in front of the palace as a garden and lawn
Vintage Gallery
Sketches of James Hunter
James Hunter served as a lieutenant in the Artillery. He was a military painter, and his sketches portrayed aspects and everyday life. Hunter served the British India Army and took part in
Tippu Sultan
Tipu Sultan (born Sultan Fateh Ali Sahab Tipu, 1 December 1751 – 4 May 1799), also known as the Tiger of Mysore, was the ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore based in South India. He was a pioneer of rocket artillery.Dalrymple, p. 243 He int ...
Campaigns.
Hunter has sketched different landscapes of South India, including
Bangalore
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
,
Mysore
Mysore (), officially Mysuru (), is a city in the southern part of the state of Karnataka, India. Mysore city is geographically located between 12° 18′ 26″ north latitude and 76° 38′ 59″ east longitude. It is located at an altitude of ...
,
Hosur
Hosur is an industrial city located in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Hosur is one of the municipal corporations in Tamil Nadu. It is located on the bank of the river River Ponnaiyar, southeast of Bengaluru and west of Chennai, the state c ...
,
Kancheepuram,
Madras
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Tamil Nadu, the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and territories of India, Indian state. The largest city ...
,
Arcot,
Sriperumbudur, etc. These paintings were published in 'A Brief history of ancient and modern India embellished with coloured engravings', published by Edward Orme, London between 1802 and 1805, and 'Picturesque scenery in the Kingdom of Mysore' published by Edward Orme in 1804.
Hunter died in India in 1792.
Some of his paintings of Bangalore Palace are below
File:James Hunter - Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace - B1974.12.1168 - Yale Center for British Art.jpg, 'Yale Center at Bangalore' and 'The Entrance of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore Feb 92, by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:'Square at Bangalore' and on reverse 'The Entrance of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore Feby. 92'.jpg, 'Square at Bangalore' and 'The Entrance of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore Feb 92, by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:North Entrance Of Tippoo's Palace At Bangalore.jpg, North Entrance Of Tippoo's Palace At Bangalore, by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:The Square And Entrance Into Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore..jpg, The Square And Entrance Into Tipu's Palace, Bangalore, by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:North Front Of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore..jpg, North Front Of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore, by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:West Front Of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore.jpg, West Front Of Tippoo's Palace, Bangalore by James Hunter (d.1792)
File:A Street Leading To The Palace Of Bangalore.jpg, A Street Leading To The Palace Of Bangalore by James Hunter (d.1792) (the gateway in the end is on the right side of next 2 photos)
Inscriptions
File:Stone from Tipu Sultan's Palace, Bangalore Fort.jpg, Farsi
Persian (), also known by its endonym Farsi (, ', ), is a Western Iranian language belonging to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Persian is a pluricentric language predominantly spoken and u ...
inscription at Tipu Sultan's Palace by Benjamin Lewis Rice
Benjamin Lewis Rice (17 July 1837 – 10 July 1927), popularly known as B. L. Rice, was a British historian, archaeologist and educationist. He is known for his pioneering work in deciphering inscriptions, especially in Kannada, and in San ...
File:Tipu Sultan's palace in Bangalore. 19.jpg, Photo of the Farsi inscription at Tipu Sultan's Palace
(2)Zar – A system invented by Tipu Sultan, calculating by abtas instead of the ordinary abjad, the Arab notation in common use among Muhammadans. (See Mysore Gazetteer, revised edition of 1897, Vol. I, Appendix, p. 812)
(3)A prophet who was minister to a king of Persia. He discovered and drank of the fountain of life and became immortal. By some he is confused with the prophet Elias, and likewise with St. George of England, whom they call Khizir Elias.
Gallery
File:Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace (15732183225).jpg, hall
File:Main Passageway at the Tipu Sultan Palace (15548622278).jpg, Passageway of the Palace
File:Inside Tipu Sultan's summer palace in Bangalore 1.jpg
File:Tipu Sultan's Palace, Bangalore.JPG
References
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Buildings and structures in Bangalore Urban district
Tourist attractions in Bangalore Urban district
Tourist attractions in Bangalore
Palaces in Bangalore
Tipu Sultan
Government buildings completed in 1791
1791 establishments in India
Houses completed in 1791